---

·      Three officials and 17 company owners charged with fraud, theft, money laundering and violation of Public Finance Management Act ·      They worked in cahoots with contractors to inflate prices of repairing and maintaining schools for R114 million ·      SCOPA has referred a separate repairs and maintenance scandal to the SIU

---

 Sizwe sama Yende & Mandla Khoza

---

One of the Mpumalanga officials arrested in connection with R114 million fraud and corruption for repairs of schools in 2018 has been on police’s radar before on R21 million corruption but was acquitted.

Project of repairs and maintenance of buildings in the Mpumalanga Department of Education appears to be a quick-cash scheme for officials as more scandals have been discovered after 2018.

The official, who cannot be named until he appears in court, was acting Mpumalanga Department of Education HOD when he and his colleagues allegedly created a project for emergency repairs and maintenance in 21 schools.

Emergency projects often allow officials to overlook the normal stringent supply chain processes, but they are still required to exercise fairness and control in procuring services or goods. However, they tend to handpick service providers and appoint them on inflated prices.

Mpumalanga Hawks arrested 20 suspects on Sunday, February 22, including the former acting HOD, a former acting CFO, a chief director of planning and director of implementation and 17 company owners.

They were charged on fraud, theft, money laundering and violation of Public Finance Management Act. 

HAWKS RAIDED SUSPECTS’ HOMES

The Hawks team led by provincial head, General Nico Gerber,  pounced on the suspects’ homes to make arrests.

 

A well- known pastor from Barberton was not found home and his family said he had gone to a mountain to pray. However, when he was called, he told the Hawks that he was in Gauteng.

Other teams of the Hawks were deployed to other provinces and they arrested three suspects in Limpopo, seven in Gauteng and one in Cape Town.  

"This emanates from a case that was opened with us in 2019/2020 financial year relating to fraud and corruption,” Gerber said.

“A synopsis of what transpired is that officials created emergency repairs and maintenance projects in 21 schools. Some of these repairs were, in a very small manner, effective but the pricing was highly inflated.  Service providers were handpicked, so the supply chain processes were not followed,” he added.

17 COMPANY OWNERS TO BE ARRESTED

Gerber said that the 17 contractors worked in cahoots with the department’s officials.  He said that they would be arrested and appear in court alongside the ten officials on Monday.

He said that the Hawks have set their sight on 40 physical people in connection with the irregularities.

“The total amount involved is R114 million and this money was distributed in a web of money laundering to government officials and families of the officials. This means that money meant for schools in rural areas was not directed as it should have. This is organised fraud and organised corruption," Gerber said. 

OFFICIAL PREVIOUSLY ACQUITTED

The former acting HOD was acquitted of fraud and corruption charges relating to the procurement of personal protective equipment (PPEs) to valued at R21.9 million.

He arrested in 2022 and released on R10 000 bail. He was acquitted in 2024.

Mpumalanga Education spokesperson, Jasper Zwane, said that the department would not comment as the matter was sub judice.

REPAIRS AND MAINTENANCE PROJECTS A CASHCOW

The latest repairs and maintenance of schools and offices scandal in Ehlanzeni District was exposed by The People’s Eye in 2024.

The Select Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) subsequently launched an investigation and found that officials provided misleading information during its hearing in October. 

Scopa also found that:

·  A guardhouse at the Ehlanzeni regional office in KaNyamazane was renovated for the second time at R993 000, and it had never been utilised. Hence, giving a hint of fraud or financial mismanagement.

·  The department deviated by more than 44% from the bill of quantities, which caused the department to incur irregular expenditure on the project.

·  The overall work on the guard house was substandard. The meranti door mentioned in the bill of quantities was not installed. Instead, cheap wooden doors were installed.

·  The project was not adequately monitored. 

The People’s Eye  independently established that the department could have saved at least R500 000 if it had not ignored five companies that quoted less than those they selected for renovations.

This is what we found:

·      At Guduza, four companies submitted their quotations. Ingala Holdings quoted less at R809 572, but the department went for Thato Ya Ona Trading, which quoted R867 268;

·         At Letsakufa Primary School, Evelyn Rose quoted R896 160, but S&S Group was awarded the tender even though their quotation was about R100 000 more at R996 435;

·      At Tekwane Primary, the highest quotation of R997 199 by Girman Thandinkosi Trading was preferred. Three other companies quoted way less and one of those quoted R802 436 – about R200 000 less;

·       At Sinqobile Primary School, the lowest quotation was R838 883. The officials decided to appoint Shabangu Projects for R992 937;

·       Zabo Trading quoted R996 898 at Matsulu Primary School, but another company that quoted R991 495 was overlooked.

SCOPA referred the matter to the Special Investigations Unit.